


Kings and Princes

by carcinoArmageddons (Karkats_hair)



Category: Hetalia - Fandom, Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: AU, Arranged Marriage, But there probably is, Canada being a cutie, Cheating, Drinking, F/M, Fighting, Gay, Germacest, Hmm I can't think of anymore, Human Names, Humans, I COULDN'T HELP IT, Incest, Kissing, M/M, Masturbation, Motivational talk, Slight depressing talk?, Wedding, drinking AGAIN, fantasies, kind of, more drinking, no-strings-attached relationship, proposal, sorry - Freeform, tmi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-03
Updated: 2016-06-04
Packaged: 2018-04-24 14:01:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,877
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4922287
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Karkats_hair/pseuds/carcinoArmageddons
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gilbert Beilschmidt was crowned king at 18, after the death of his father three years earlier. </p><p>His younger brother, Ludwig, aged 10, idolised his every move, trying to be the same in almost every way. Eight years later, Ludwig had developed a personality of his own, realising that he didn't need to be his brothers replica. The two are closer than Velcro. However, that doesn't mean Gilbert shares all his secrets with his little brother...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is what I was talking about on that one chapter of C's fic, here it is!
> 
> (For those of you who don't know, (probably a large majority of you,) this account is a shared one. I run carcinoArmageddons and C runs Karkats_hair.)
> 
> Also, Ludwig is the best word to write while half-asleep. It's funny word on it's own, (no offense to all the Ludwig's out there XP,) but it's even better when it's full of typos, eg. Ludwug, Lidwug, Ludwid, Lugwig, etc. : )

Ludwig Beilschmidt aimlessly wandered the stretching halls of his castle. He stopped and smiled proudly at a gleaming portrait of his father. He missed the old man but had long since gotten over his death. He was proud of what he and his brother had become, and knew their father would be too. He solemnly saluted the portrait before continuing on his way. He had no clear destination.

A pair of footsteps sounded behind him, and he knew from years of studying and trying to imitate the older boy's walk, that it was his brother.

"Morning Luddy." The king slung an arm over his brother's shoulder.

"My king." He bowed his head ever so slightly.

Gilbert groaned. "Come on Ludz. Why do you still insist on being so formal? We're alone!"

He sighed. "Morning Gil."

The king then proclaimed that a noogie was in order. "That's the little brother I know and love!"

Ludwig smiled, a sight that filled Gilbert with joy. He loved what he did to his younger brother, who only ever genuinely smiled in his company. He missed the days when he smiled all the time, but those smiles had been fake, forced by the idolisation of his brother. Now-a-days, he never smiles in public, or around anyone other than his brother, but he knows that's just the sort of person he is.

"So, Lud, what's on your agenda for today?"

"Sword training and studying. Not much."

"Geez, sword training I agree with, but studying? When will you ever need that crap? You're eighteen now, do you really still need a tutor?"

"Just because you were crowned at eighteen and quit studying, doesn't mean I will too."

"Aw, you're such a hard-ass Luddy. What are you studying at the moment anyway?"

"Religion."

"Oh boo hoo. The only religion you need is me! The awesome king!"

Ludwig laughed. "I don't think you exactly count as a religion, Gil."

"Huh? What are you talking about? People worship me! Of course I'm a religion."

He sighed. "Whatever you say, O mighty king."

Gilbert smirked, whacking his brother on the back. "Well, I have some kingly business to attend to, so I have to get going. I'll see you later bro!" He turned down a corridor, leaving Ludwig to continue walking alone. He passed a servant polishing a table, who immediately stopped what they were doing and bowed. Ludwig gave them a curt nod.

As he was walking, he pondered yet again how huge the castle was. He'd been around eighteen years and was still discovering new places and things. Alot of doors still remained locked, and Ludwig always wondered why. What was behind those doors? Where were the keys? Would he be allowed in if he asked?

He ended up in the kitchen. As soon as he walked through the doorway, all activity ceased. Everyone bowed. Ludwig nodded, just as he had previously. "Good work, I assume? Breakfast was wonderful."

The kitchen returned to normal, people bustling everywhere. An apple sat alone on a counter. "Would it be possible for me to have this?" He asked the nearest person.

"Of course, my prince." They bowed and Ludwig took the apple.

"Thank you."

The servant continued working and Ludwig left the kitchen. He was known throughout the castle as being more polite than his brother, albeit, alot more stern. Gilbert would have taken the apple and sat up on one of the benches, grinning with his mouth closed and apple juice dribbling down his chin. He was more known as the fun one, often clapping servants on the back, or having conversations with them.

However, in public, the king was a completely different man. He was alot more like his younger brother. Stern and solemn. He took after his father, who ruled with an iron fist, but was a nice guy to be around in the safety of his castle. To be honest, Ludwig thought his brother might actually be afraid of his people. Afraid of showing them what he was really like. Afraid it would make him look unworthy of the throne.

Ludwig sighed. He didn't want his brother to have to put on an act for the crowd. It just wasn't him. He vaguely wondered what 'kingly business' his brother was up to. Was he actually doing kingly things, or was he goofing off with some of the servants? Ludwig walked outside, towards the training area. The yard was full of soldiers, and, just like what had happened in the kitchen, all movement stopped. The whole yard bowed and Ludwig nodded, again. "Keep up the good work, men."

Everything resumed. A man strolled up to the prince, sword and shield in hand. Basch Zwingli, in charge of the defence of the kingdom. He handed the sword and shield to Ludwig.

"Here for some more training, sire?"

"Indeed." Although Ludwig was good with a sword and shield, his prefered weapon was his greatsword. However, he needed training in all the weapons available to him, for whatever situation he might find himself in.

"Very good. I thought I might pit you against some of the younger men today. Some of their work is a bit sloppy and they could do with some examples from the great  
prince himself. Hopefully they won't get too starstruck."

Ludwig nodded and they walked over to where two boys about his age were fighting, surrounded by a group of other men. One of them got distracted by the prince and got butted by the other boy's shield, sending him flying to the ground with a sword pointed at his throat.

"I yield! I yield!" He yelled, and the sword was withdrawn.

"First point, don't get distracted by your surroundings. Good work taking advantage of his weak moment."

The victorious boy spun around, eyes wide. "M-My prince. Th-Thank you." He bowed stiffly.

"Matthew, you're up." Basch nudged Ludwig into the circle and a boy, who had been standing timidly behind the others, stepped up, eyes wide. Ludwig noted that he looked almost exactly like the boy who'd just won the previous fight.

"Let's see what you've got," he said quietly. Matthew didn't seem to hear.

Matthew swung at Ludwig, a weak blow he easily deflected with his shield. 

"Come on Matty!" Someone yelled. It was the winner from before. Ludwig was surprised. Not many people would have gone directly against the prince like that. 

Obviously, majority of his companions thought that too, as they were all giving him incredulous looks. He was oblivious to them all.

Ludwig sent a swing at the boy, purposefully hitting the shield bluntly, sending the boy stumbling backwards a few metres. He was lucky he managed to keep his footing, but even still, if it was a real fight, the kid would be dead by now.

"Keep your shield strong and stand with your feet further apart. More like this." Ludwig demonstrated and the boy nodded, taking his advice. Ludwig swung again, the same as last time, and Matthew took it alot better, sliding back a bit in the dirt, but otherwise stronger than before.

"Good. Now stop hiding behind your shield. It not only protects you, but it's a weapon too. Take a swing at someone and hit it with the blunt of your sword, then bash them with your shield."

He kept fighting the boys, often dropping hints and advice whenever he thought something could be improved on or learnt. Sometimes he would demonstrate things with Basch, because he was more experienced. By the end, he had noticed a marked improvement in alot of their fighting styles.

Ludwig handed his weaponry back to Basch as they walked towards the end of the yard.

"So what did you think?"

"They have alot to learn."

"Yes. Most of them are fairly new and have barely touched a sword in their life before coming here."

"Who were the two that looked the same?"

"Alfred and Matthew. Brothers. Matthew followed in the footsteps of his older brother. He's one of our newest recruits."

"They seem to have a pretty good relationship."

"Not unlike yours and the kings, I'd say."

Ludwig nodded and Basch stopped, bowing. "Have a nice day, sire."

He kept walking, back to the castle.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"AHH! Dude, guess what!"

Gilbert burst into Ludwigs room and laid face-first beside him on the bed. He'd been peacefully reading one of his study books before bed when his brother had come  
barging in.

"What?"

"I'm getting maaaarrrrrrriiiiiiiieeeeddddd!" He whined.

Ludwig sat up, genuinely surprised at his brothers outburst. "Married?! To who? Why?"

He rolled over. "Some random princess from another kingdom! Abel says I have to marry and have kids so the kingdom has an heir, but I don't want to! I'm only twenty-six!" Abel was one of the king's advisors, just like Basch, but he was in charge of foreign affairs, mostly economy wise.

"I'm sure it won't be that bad."

"Abel reckons we got tonnes of letters from princess' requesting to marry me, and he's picked out the best of the best!"

"Poor you." Ludwig rolled his eyes.

"He also said that it's your turn soon now you're eighteen. A handsome young prince like you'll get snapped up in no time."

"W-Wait, what?"

"You heard me. The only reason I got away with it for so long is that they wanted me to get used to being king."

Ludwig sighed, sinking down to lie beside his brother. "That's dumb."

Gilbert turned to face his little brother, burying his face in the side of his chest. "I think that's the smartest thing I've ever heard you say."

He smilied, closing his eyes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was not unheard of to find the two brothers sleeping together. More often than not; whenever Gilbert had a bad dream, or the stress of being king would get particularly bad, he would crawl under his younger brother's blankets and relish the warmth radiating from having a person beside him. Maybe getting married could be a good thing? A person beside him constantly?

He tried to snuggle back into his little brother, but his warmth was gone. He opened his eyes blearily and vaguely noticed the other boy on the otherside of the room. Gilbert groaned and rolled over onto his face, spreading out over the bed.

"Would you get up already? We were called for breakfast ten minutes ago."

"We were?" His voice was muffled by the pillows.

"Yes, we were. A servant came in and woke us. You even nodded at her." He gestured over to two knights standing at the door.

"Oh." He didn't remember that at all. He really wasn't a morning person. He forced his face out of the pillow, more because of the fact that he was suddenly having trouble breathing than him actually wanting to get up.

"Come on, lazy arse. You're the king."

"Exactly. Don't tell me what to do and don't call me lazy arse." His words were slightly slurred from drowsiness.

Ludwig sighed, walking over to the bed. "Guess what?"

"What?"

"Today is Saturday."

"So?"

"We can drink together today."

The king sat up immediately. "Really? You're not busy?"

He shook his head and his brother almost leapt out of bed, the promise of a drinking night with his brother spurring him on. Ludwig couldn't help but laugh. Gilbert  
often got drunk, either by himself or with his soldiers, but he reckons he has the best times when he's with his brother. He liked seeing his little brother lighten up, smile, joke, goof around, everything he didn't do when he was sober.

When they were both ready to leave, (Gilbert kept a spare change of clothes in Ludwig's room for times like these,) Gilbert held his arm out to his brother, who didn't take it. Gilbert laughed and they strolled down the halls together, escorted by two knights, towards the dining room.

By this time, both boys were certain news of the wedding would be buzzing around the castle like wildfire. If the personal guards weren't enough of a giveaway, (they must be worried he might try and run away,) the place was looking just the slightest bit cleaner than usual and people seemed to be dashing around more.

"Abel really didn't give you any ideas as to who it could be?" Ludwig asked, still puzzling over the mystery woman.

"Not a clue." Gilbert sighed as the walked through the door to the dining room and sat down at the big table there. Breakfast was the usual and afterwards, Abel insisted on talking with the king, leaving Ludwig alone yet again. He wandered to the huge library and picked out a book on the kingdom's history. Gilbert often called him a nerd for it, but Ludwig actually liked reading.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was nearing 5 pm when Ludwig saw his brother next. He had bounced into the library, (where Ludwig was still reading, a different book now though. He hadn't just stayed in the library that whole time,) and appeared right in front of his little brother. 

"Luddy!"

He put the book down. "Yes?"

"Can we go drinking now? Come on, you promised!"

"First of all, I didn't actually promise anything, and second, I don't see what you're complaining about, it's not like I'm busy or anything."

"Yes!" Gilbert pulled his brother up roughly and clapped him on the back. Ludwig smiled, there was almost nothing Gilbert liked better than drinking. They headed to Gilbert's room, where he had previously set up for their drinking night. They settled themselves at the table and Ludwig poured them each a large glass of beer.

Gilbert raised his glass. "To us!"

Ludwig clinked his against his brother's. "To us."

They both managed to down their drinks in one go, Ludwig finishing faster than his brother. Gilbert grinned, a frothy mustache decorating his upper lip as he poured  
them some more.

"Abel's still refusing to tell me who my mystery girl is."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. She's coming here in a few days."

"What?!" Ludwig almost spat out his beer.

"Uh-huh."

"When's the wedding then?"

He shrugged. "Not sure actually. Abel invited her over to stay and get used to things first."

"Oh. That's... A good idea, I guess."

"Well, I think so. It'll give me some time to suss her out. See if she's after my money, or just heard about my awesomeness and wants to bask in my radiant glow."

Ludwig laughed. Some of the things his brother came out with were absolutely ridiculous. "Feeling better about the marriage then?"

"Do you think they'll let me be drunk the whole time?"

"No, I don't think it works that way."

"Damn."

A few moments of silence passed between them.

"Don't worry. I'm sure Abel has made the right choice. She'll be your perfect match."

The king laughed nervously, downing his whole drink again. "Yeah, sure."

Ludwig sighed, putting a hand on his brother's shoulder. "Relax Gil. She really will be. I can feel it."

Gilbert sighed, smiling weakly at his brother. "Yeah."

The night went on, both boys getting drunker than they could ever remember. Ludwig woke up in the vegetable garden in the middle of the night in nothing but his underclothes and a splitting headache.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case anyone was wondering, the kid who got knocked over in the first fight: Arthur.
> 
> I'll try and keep some sort of update schedule on this, but, unlike C, I'm only up to the third chapter, not the fifteenth.  
> My original idea for this was Gilbert being this horrible, oppressive dictator, and the whole tone of the story was going to be a hell of a lot darker.
> 
> Hehe, it was so hard not to make this Germacest.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As you can tell, I don't know how to introduce royals.

The prince stood beside his king, both dressed in their bests, as they awaited the arrival of the soon-to-be Mrs. Beilschmidt. The day had finally come to meet the mystery princess, and Gilbert still had no knowledge of who the woman was. The whole hall was silent. Ludwig could see Gilbert's twitching, even though he was trying his best to hide it. They stood at the foot of the stairs leading to the throne.

Soon, footsteps could be heard from the hall, echoing loudly. To Gilbert, it felt like a herd of elephants coming to trample him, and there was nothing he could do about it. For what seemed like forever, he waited as the footsteps dragged on, slowly getting louder and louder, until he finally saw a person, followed by more people. But all he could see were guards.

The man that had appeared first was barely five metres away. "Announcing the arrival of the honourable King Ivan Braginsky, Queen Anri Mogens, Prince Feliks Lukasiewicz, Prince Antonio Carriedo, Princess Erika Vogel and Princess Elizaveta Hedervary."

Both brother's faces fell in disbelief. The new queen was none other than Gilbert's childhood friend, Elizaveta. It wasn't Erika because she was too young. King Ivan and their father had been close friends, and they had gotten to know the children quite well. 

Ivan's royal family was well known as being quite untraditional. As King Ivan had insisted on marrying for love, he married a castle servant girl, Anri Mogens. Unfortunately, his wife could not have children, so they adopted, an unheard of thing. Erika Vogel was actually Basch's younger sister, the royal family's only child to have been adopted from the Beilschmidt's kingdom. 

Basch's family had been extremely poor, despite the whole family's working efforts. Basch was a recruit in the kingdom's military at the time, and King Ivan had noticed his potential, also, how skinny the boy was. He inquired about him and his family, paying them a visit with Anri. They were nursing their sick infant daughter. The king offered them quite a large sum of money to help them. He also offered to take their daughter to live with them, he could get her the help she needed. They would be welcome to visit anytime. They reluctantly agreed, knowing that it would be what's best for their family. She was probably about nine now. 

The boy's quickly recovered their composure as King Ivan and Queen Anri approached. They hadn't really seen them since Gilbert's coronation, but they looked pretty much the same, if a bit older.

"My boys!" Anri laughed. "My, haven't you grown!" 

Ivan shook each of their hands in turn. Since their father's death, Anri had began considering the brothers as her own sons, even offering for them to join their family.

"Uncle Baschy!" A little blond girl came running up past the king, leaping into Basch's arms, who spun her around in a circle. She giggled loudly.

"Oh, my dear Erika!" The tone in his voice was the happiest Ludwig could have imagined.

Feliks and Antonio were talking to some of the knights, often making imaginary sword actions. 

Then, Gilbert got his first look at his queen-to-be. Elizaveta walked up beside her father and grinned at Gilbert, who returned it. He knelt and took her hand, kissing it lightly.

"My princess."

Elizaveta giggled. "Where'd you learn that from?"

He shrugged. "Must be reading too many books."

Ludwig scoffed before he could contain himself, earning a half glare from his brother. Elizaveta laughed at him.

"So, how'd I end up with such an amazing fiancee then?"

Abel smiled at his king knowingly. "I saw King Braginsky's name on one of the envelopes. What better queen than one you already know?" 

Ludwig could see the effort his brother was putting into not being himself.

"You seem to have matured well. Nothing like the devil of a prince you used to be be." Ivan chuckled.

Gilbert laughed. "No, not at all. I remember those days well."

Ludwig wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry. The fact that Gilbert had to always pretend to be something he wasn't made him upset, but the sheer hilarity of the lie almost made him laugh. Just then, the two princes came bounding towards the little group.

"Ludz!" Felikz hugged the other prince and Antonio held out a hand. "It's been forever!"

"I know."

"So Gil's getting married to Liz, huh?"

"Yeah."

"That's kind of weird and kind of cool at the same time."

"I suppose so."

He suddenly turned towards the queen. "Oh mother, this means Gil and Luddy will be our brothers!"

"Indeed." The queen smiled at the boys.

"Well, not actually." King Ivan added.

Gilbert smiled at everyone. "We could not ask for a better family-in-law."

Anri hugged him and Ludwig in turn. "Would it be about time we got shown to our rooms?"

"Of course!"

A few servants and knights led the procession down the stretching halls of the castle, dropping people off at their respective rooms. Everyone was told to meet back in the throne room at six o'clock. Ludwig and Gilbert were alone in Ludwig's bedroom. Gilbert had barely slept in his own room since he found out about the marriage. It wasn't hard to tell the poor boy was petrified.

"Feeling better now you know who you're marrying?"

The king cracked a wide smile at his brother. "Definitely. And Elizaveta? You were right about Abel making the right choice."

Ludwig half-smiled. "I knew I would be." He'd really hoped he would be. He hadn't wanted to let his brother down. "Do you know when the wedding is yet?"

He shook his head. "I think that's why we're meeting up tonight. Probably because I don't have to waste much time getting to know my bride, it'll be soon."

"Are you ready?"

"I-I guess so. I mean, I don't really have a choice. I have to be ready."

"Gil-"

"I'm as ready as I'll ever be, Luddy. Don't you worry about me." He clapped his brother on the back, flashing him a smile. But Ludwig could tell it was forced. He sighed and smiled warmly back at him.

"I know you are."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Six o'clock came, and with it, Gilbert's nerves. He'd spent the last half an hour pacing his brother's room, (he never left,) and at least the hour before that asking if it would be alright for him to have a few beers. Ludwig felt terrible for him, and kept reminding him to breathe, a vital thing he seemed to keep forgetting.

Finally, Ludwig managed to push him out the door. "Calm down Gilbert. It's just a meeting with some old friends. Nothing to be freaked out about."

Gilbert took a deep breath, a hand bunching up in his pocket. "You're right. N-Nothing to be scared of."

Ludwig quickly took his brother's hand, squeezing it tightly, reassuringly. Gilbert smiled, bracing himself to open the door, dropping Ludwig's hand. The other princes were already inside, as well as an assortment of others. No-one else from the other family was there yet.

Feliks bounced over to them, Antonio close behind. "Neat castle you guys have got here."

"Yeah, it's pretty nice." Gilbert nodded, looking around the room as if it was one he rarely saw.

"It's huge considering it's just the two of you."

"Alot of people live here, you know."

"Still, not that many people."

The door opened again and everyone turned to see who it was. King Ivan and Queen Anri, followed by Elizaveta. Ludwig bowed, Gilbert quickly following suit. They straightened up as the others neared.

"Erika won't be joining us, I'm afraid. She wants to spend time with her other family."

Gilbert nodded. "That's alright. I can't imagine she'd be all too entertained here any way."

Abel led them all over to a large table, where they sat.

"So, why don't we get straight to it then?" Gilbert clapped and smiled regally, a look which Ludwig thought didn't really fit him, but did at the same time.

"Yes, we should. The wedding will be held two weeks from now." Ivan announced. Ludwig felt his jaw drop.

"T-Two weeks?" Gilbert squeaked, eyes wide with surprise. Then he cleared his throat, attempting to regain his composure. "I mean, why two weeks?"

"We need to get home as soon as possible, darling. Two weeks is generous." Anri smiled warmly.

"Oh. Y-Yeah, I understand. With travel time as well." He nodded.

"It was absolutely wonderful for your family to come all this way." Abel bowed.

"Yes, well, Erika wanted to see her family again anyway, so it works out for us."

"So, you all are staying until then?"

"Of course."

"Very well. I'll make the necessary arrangements." Abel bowed his head, leaving the room with a few servants on his tail.

"Okay," Gilbert clapped again, gesturing to King Ivan, "Now that's over with, maybe you and your boys would care to join my brother and I for a drink?"

Ludwig sighed. "Gilbert, I can't drink tonight. I have a maths test tomorrow."

"Oh. Just us then."

"And they aren't going either. We've travelled a while and they need their sleep." Anri glared at her husband, knowing he would have accepted the offer.

"Uh, yeah."

"Oh, just... me then." The disappointment in his voice was evident.

Ludwig felt sorry for him, and also slightly embarrassed. He cleared his throat. "Well,I think that about wraps up this meeting. We'll let you all rest now."

Everyone stood and began the short walk to the door. Gilbert lagged at the back. Antonio fell into step beside him.

"I'm up for a drink. Where will I meet you?" He whispered. "After everyone's gone to bed of course."

Gilbert visibly brightened, grinning wildly at the prince. "Back here, so you know where to go."

Antonio nodded, smiling. Ludwig sighed. He knew that plan was destined to end badly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

97%. Not bad. Ludwig ran through the few questions he got wrong, scolding himself whenever he picked up on the tiny little errors that made him lose that three percent. As he was the only student, he always got his tests back immediately.

Admittedly, he had gotten a little distracted. Earlier that day, Prince Antonio had been found passed out in a hallway, a pair of underwear on his head. He swore Gilbert's innocence, that he had nothing to do with his state, but it was pretty obvious. You don't end up with underwear on your head from drinking by yourself.

Ludwig sighed. Probably not the best impression Gilbert could have made. He pushed his chair back and stood, taking his test and walking out of the library and into the hallway. He heard footsteps come running up from behind him, up the long corridor. He kept walking.

"Ludwig! Luddy!" A woman's voice. Unmistakably, Elizaveta's. He stopped and turned, bowing at the princess as she approached. "I'm glad I caught you!"

"What is it?" He held an arm out to her and she took it. They turned and walked.

"Well, I just wanted to know if there was anything you could tell me about my- my fiancee."

She seemed unsure of the word, as if she'd never used it before. Ludwig thought for a moment, eventually coming up with a few points.

"He's a really nice guy."

"I know that. Tell me something different."

"That maturity he shows is just an act."

"Yeah, I thought so."

"He is really nervous about this whole thing."

"Aww, that's so cute!"

"Abel, his advisor that organised this, refused to tell him who you were."

"Oh, the poor boy. He must have been terrified!"

"He was. Not the best planning on Abel's part."

She sighed. "I'm pretty scared as well. I mean, what better man to marry than a family friend, but it also feels kind of... strange? I don't know, I'll get used to it."

"It will certainly be different having a girl around."

She smiled. "Well, it's been nice chatting to you. I'll see you tonight." They'd come to a crossroads in the corridors. She turned left and he went right, towards his bedroom. Everyone was meeting again later that day for a tour of the gardens. Ludwig tossed the test onto his desk and collapsed on his bed. For some reason, he felt incredibly tired, maybe it was the softness of the mattress or the perfect warmth of the room. Whatever the reason, Ludwig couldn't fight his sudden urge to sleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What felt like hours later, Ludwig was awoken by a voice in his ear.

"Luddy~. Ludz. Luddykins. Ludwig. Goddamnit dude, wake up!"

Well, he was woken by the shout at the end.

"What?" He mumbled, opening his eyes slightly. He attempted to focus on the face blocking his vision, but it was too close. It didn't matter though, because it was obviously his brother.

"Just wanted to make sure you were all good for the gardens. Which you clearly ARE NOT!"

"Oh. How much time do we have?"

"Five minutes."

This got Ludwig's full attention and he sat bolt upright, headbutting his brother so hard it almost knocked the two of them out. When his vision finally came back, Ludwig managed to scramble out of bed and fix himself up a bit. "Why didn't you find me sooner?"

"Well I figured Mr. Goody-two-shoes would be fine to handle himself, but I checked in just to make sure. And you're lucky I did!" He was rubbing his head, which Ludwig could see was already forming a lump. He discovered that he was too. He sighed.

The boys hurried out of the room and into the gardens. Just in time. Gilbert took the arm of his fiancee and led everyone around the gardens. Twilight was just settling in and everything looked amazing. Gilbert stopped everyone at a nice little pond bathed in sunset. It was surrounded by beautiful flowers. He was grinning, rather widely, as he carefully picked a flower. He turned around and placed it in Elizaveta's hair. He took her hands and got down on one knee.

"Princess Elizaveta Hedervary. I know we are already technically engaged, but I couldn't be happier to have you as my queen-to-be. Out of all the princesses Abel could have chosen, he certainly made the right choice choosing you." He let go of her hands and slipped one into his pocket, pulling out a small box. He opened it, revealing a stunning diamond ring. Anri and Elizaveta were both crying, both grinning. Ludwig noticed Feliks was too. "Elizaveta, would you do me the honour of becoming my queen?"

She nodded hurriedly, a hand covering her smile as Gilbert slipped the ring onto her finger. He jumped up and they hugged tightly, Elizaveta sobbing happily into his shoulder. Everyone else began clapping. Erika ran up and hugged the two of them, causing everybody else to do the same. It was a giant group hug of people crying and laughing.

On the way back to the castle, Elizaveta and Gilbert were inseparable. Erika had picked a flower and stuck it in Feliks's hair. He made her a flower crown and she demanded he teach her. Many broken flowers later and she made one, gifting it to Feliks. Ludwig could tell the two had a good relationship, their hair even matched. Antonio talked to his parents the whole way. Ludwig was left to take up the rear. Alone.

He wondered if Gilbert had come up with the proposal thing himself. It wasn't anything he needed to do or was expected of him. Ludwig sighed. His head really hurt and thinking wasn't making it feel any better. He vowed that when they got back to the castle, ice was in order.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... apparently Belgium, Hungary, Liechtenstein, Poland and Spain all became one with Russia.
> 
> C felt bad about Anri in her story, Two Days, so she asked if I could do something with her, and so I married her to Russia. Better? Worse? I don't really know.
> 
> I've only about half written the next chapter >.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, it's been a while, hasn't it? Sorry guys, I've just been a little busy. >.

The days to the royal wedding seemed to take an eternity, yet pass by in a flash. Gilbert still spent a lot of nights with Ludwig, fretting over every little thing. Not particularly about the wedding per se, but just everything. He seemed to be constantly on edge.

Elizaveta on the other hand, was so level-headed and calm about the whole thing it was scary. She looked to be going about her life, as Ludwig presumed, like she normally would. Then again, she'd probably been brought up knowing she'd be getting married off one day, whereas Ludwig was pretty sure Gilbert hadn't given it a second thought since his coronation.

"Lud. Lud. Lud. Lud." Gilbert was knocking tirelessly at his brothers door, who lay on his bed reading a book.

"What?" He shouted.

"I'm coming in." Hardly a moment after he said the words, the door burst open and the boy dove under the bed covers. Ludwig sighed at the ball of blanket and rubbed what he assumed was his brother's back.

"I-I can't do it," he sniffled. It wasn't hard for Ludwig to tell he was crying.

"Yes you can. I know you can."

"N-no. I can't."

"You've faced harder things then this."

"This is different."

"How? Liz is your friend. It's not like your marrying a total stranger."

"Just... Because!"

"Uh-huh." Ludwig stopped rubbing the blankets and Gilbert popped his head out the end.

"I swear it is! You try getting married someday! I mean, I like Liz, she's a great person, but I don't... you know... I don't... love her."

"Don't worry about it. She probably doesn't love you either."

That reality seemed to hit Gilbert like a brick. He crawled back under the covers and started crying again. Ludwig felt like a real idiot. He made a mental note that if anyone ever came to him with love advice again, he'd keep his stupid mouth shut.

"Look, Gil, I'm sorry. You know I didn't mean it like that."

The sniffling sounds stopped and were followed by a deep breath and Gilbert's head again popping out from the covers.

"Yeah, I know. I'm too awesome for her not to love me." He grinned widely.

Ludwig's shoulders sagged. Luckily his brother was looking in the other direction. He really could be so arrogant. This wedding must be really getting to him.

"Maybe you should talk to Liz about it."

His face fell. "I have. She's so calm and level-headed about this whole thing, and I'm a nervous wreck! It's embarrassing!" He sighed. "Thanks bro." He kicked his legs and the covers went flying. He smiled again at his brother before hopping out of the bed. He walked backwards until he reached the open door, saluting as he closed it. Ludwig sighed. Again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I, Gilbert Beilschmidt, take you, Elizaveta Hedervary, to be my lawfully wedded wife, my constant friend, my faithful partner and my love from this day forward."

"I, Elizaveta Hedervary, take you, Gilbert Beilschmidt, to be my partner, loving what I know of you, and trusting what I do not yet know. I eagerly anticipate the chance to grow together, getting to know the man you will become, and falling in love a little more each day. I promise to love and cherish you through whatever life may bring us."

"I give you this ring as a visible and constant symbol of my promise to be with you, for as long as I live." 

Ludwig watched as his brother slipped a gold band onto Elizaveta's finger, a smile on his face sweeter than any his little brother had seen. Then the celebrant spoke up.

"And now, by the power vested in me, I hereby pronounce you husband and wife. Gilbert Beilschmidt, you may kiss your bride." 

There was hardly a moment of hesitation before the couple embraced. No kissing was involved. They pre-planned it. Gilbert had been too nervous during the rehersal. There was awes from the crowd.

"And now it is time for the candles of unity."

A small candlebra sat on the altar, one large one in the middle surrounded on either side by two smaller, lit ones. Elizaveta and Gilbert each took a small one, lighting the middle one together. They blew out their own simultaneously, grinning at each other.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you for the first time Mr and Mrs Gilbert Beilschmidt."

The audience clapped loudly. A few cheers and whoops went up. Ludwig could see people crying. He wished his parents were here. They would be so proud. Gilbert looked so happy. Ludwig smiled, a big, genuine smile, the likes of which hadn't graced his face in public since he was a very young child. He'd been smiling during the ceremony, but it could barely be put down to a smile. Too bad Gilbert's back was turned.

Elizaveta looked stunning. Her dress was perfect. Her hair was perfect. Everything was just perfect. "You look beautiful," Gilbert whispered into his new wife's ear as they continued to smile at the crowd.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"To Elizaveta and Gilbert. May your lives together be long and happy." Ivan lifted his glass of Vodka, toasting to the newlyweds. Everyone cheered.

Ivan and his family had decided they'd have a private party after the other guests left. Erika was staying the night with her brother and their family instead.

It started off relatively civilised, with Ivan making a toast to the new couple. Then Gilbert made one for his parents. Chaos inevitably ensued.

Gilbert flopped down in a chair beside his brother, almost knocking it over. He was laughing hysterically.

"What?"

"Isn't Lizzy beaut- beautiful?" He hicupped mid-sentence, still laughing.

"She certainly is a sight."

The afore-mentioned woman was spinning in circles with Feliks and Antonio, all three laughing hard. 

Gilbert sighed, hicupping as he did so. "Ludz, I hope you get as lucky as me."

Ludwig ruffled his brother's hair, taking a big swig from his beer. "Me too."

Gilbert stood up, swaying slightly. "C'mon Ludz. I haven't seen you off thi- this chair all night. Let's dance!"

"What-I-"

But Gilbert had already pulled him to his feet, spinning him around.

"G-Gil!" His shock was evident, but turned into laughing. Ludwig had been queitly drinking at the table the whole night. It was impossible to tell whether he was drunk or not. Although, now he was standing, it was obvious. Gilbert continued to dance with him, even though Ludwig wasn't really doing much.

Ludwig couldn't quite remember much after that.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
When he woke up, his head was spinning. The light coming through his curtain was blinding. His stomach seemed to be churning the opposite way his head was. Ludwig knew this feeling all too well. He was hungover. He groaned and tried to bury his face under the covers, but nothing seemed to work. He begrudgingly dragged himself out of bed to get ready for the day.

Luckily, he had the day off. Down the corridors he went. He didn't even notice the heavy footsteps until it was too late. A hand clamped down on his shoulder, almost sending him sprawling.

"Hey bro, how's the hangover?"

Ludwig glared at his brother, he was almost certain Gilbert had said that particulary loud just to annoy him.

He laughed. "Well, I guess I got off lucky this time. Antonio, Anri and I seem to be the only ones without hangovers!"

"Good for you guys." The younger brother mumbled, rubbing at his temples.

They made it to breakfast, where Anri announced they would be leaving tomorrow. The rest of the meal was virtually silent, with every scrape of utensil on plate   
making half the table flinch.

After the meal, Ludwig was feeling at least a bit better. He decided getting some fresh air in the gardens would help clear his head, so off he went. He sat at a bench, opposite some pretty purple flowers. 

He wasn't sure how long he sat out there, lost in his own thoughts. Erika had skipped by with Basch, waving as they went, and he'd watched a few butterflies come and go. He was feeling better now, so he went back inside to go find his brother. After Ivan and his family leave, Gilbert and Elizaveta are going on their honeymoon for a week, so that'll leave Ludwig virtually alone.

He wandered the halls, not really sure where his brother would be. He'd checked Gilbert's room to see if he was packing, but no. He passed through the kitchen, the throne room, even out to the training area. He'd been everywhere he could think. Ludwig gave up and went to his room, rubbing his eyes as he closed the door behind him.

He opened his eyes just to be blinded by a mop of silver hair less than 20cm from his face. Needless to say, Ludwig almost jumped out of his skin. "Gilbert! What the hell? I've been looking everywhere for you."

"And I've been waiting ages for you."

Ludwig sighed. "Why?"

"I can ask you the same thing."

"I-I don't really know."

"Me neither, maybe I wanted to spend my last day at home with my best bro?"

"I'm your only bro."

"Exactly! Which makes you my best bro!"

Ludwig smiled, ruffling his brother's hair. "Alright, fine. So what do you want to do?"

"Drink?" Gilbert raised his eyebrows hopefully.

"Why is everything always about drinking with you? Do you really want to be hungover for your honeymoon?"

He smiled lopsidedly. "Well, what else do you want to do?"

Ludwig thought, and couldn't really come up with anything. "I don't care, as long as I'm with you."

Gilbert grinned.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The two brothers sat at a small table in Ludwig's room, a beer in each of their hands, grinning widely, these cheeks tinged pink with alcohol.

"Y'know what Ludz?"

"Mm?"

"I wish you could come on my honeymoon with me."

Ludwig laughed. "I can't do that."

Gilbert pouted. "Why not?"

"The whole point of the honeymoon is for you and Lizzy to get some alone time."

"But- But I don't want alone time. I want to be with you."

"I know, but you're married now, you have duties and responsibilites. Going on the honeymoon is one."

He sighed. "I know, but... I don't even want a wife! I think it's stupid that I'm forced to marry someone. And have kids! Can you imagine me as a father, Lud? I-I'll be terrible!"

"You did a fine job of raising me."

Gilbert's eyes widened, like he'd never really thought about it before, then his look turned to sadness. He hung his head in his hands and started crying. "I wish dad was here. I wish he'd been here with us, growing up. Mum too."

Gilbert had been deeply affected by the deaths of his parents. Their mother had died when Ludwig was only three, and four years later they lost their father. Both were lost due to sickness, and while Ludwig had accepted it and moved on, it had stayed painfully with Gilbert each day. He tried, but somehow, it always just seemed to stick. He'd gotten used to it now though, and it was just a dull ache he couldn't get rid of.

Ludwig rubbed his back. "Me too Gil. They'de be so happy, so proud of you. Of us."

He shook his head vigourously. "No. No they wouldn't. I'm a disgrace to the family name. A disappointment. Disgusting."

Ludwig was shocked. Never had he heard his brother speak like this about himself. "What? Gilbert. You are none of those things! You are the best, kindest, friendliest person I know. You never fail to make someone smile. Even the servants and maids like you! There is no way they would ever be disgraced to call you their son."

He shook his head again. "No. You were always the favourite. The golden child. Even before mum died, when you were a tiny little baby. They would have wanted you to be king, not a monster like me."

"Gilbert, what are you talking about? You're not a monster. You're a human."

He just kept shaking his head, remaining silent this time.

It made Ludwig angry. He slapped his brother hard across the face, raising his voice. "Now you listen to me! Whatever the hell you are talking about isn't as bad as you think it is. You're only human, humans make mistakes, okay? Whatever's going around that thick head of yours is false; lies that I don't know how you came up with."

Gilbert nodded. A look of determination had set his face. He skulled the rest of his drink and sighed, silent for another moment before he smiled. "Thanks Ludz, I really needed that. Even drunk off your arse you can still pick me up off the floor. You're right, about everything you said. I...I was being stupid. I don't know where that shit came from."

Ludwig smiled back. "I never want to hear anything like thhat again. And I never, EVER, want you to think like that, alright? Promise me Gilbert. Promise me you'll stay strong."

"I promise."

Ludwig drank the rest of his beer. "Good."

"Hey, Ludz?"

"Yeah?"

"Can we go to bed now? I'm tired." He yawned, as if to demonstrate his point.

"You staying here?"

He nodded. "I figured it's probably the last night I can."

That realization hit Ludwig like a speeding train. It was something so little, but so crucial in their lives. The brothers would always sleep together when one was upset or had a particularly bad day, or just needed the other. Ludwig had never really thought about what would change between the pair now Gilbert was married.

"Y-Yeah, I guess so."

"I told Liz earlier that I'd probably be staying here." He made his way over to his little brothers bed and got under the covers, yawning again. Ludwig followed, climbing in the other side. Gilbert almost instantly curled into his chest. Ludwig threw an arm over him.

"Lud?"

"Mm?"

"I love you."

"I love you too, Gil."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So guys, I'm thinking of taking this story in a completely different direction, a direction that would make a bit of the last chapters note invalid...   
> I've completely lost where I was going with it, and tbh want to totally rewrite it. But I'm too lazy and I reckon I can make do with what I've got. (Most of it would have been virtually the same anyway, just little tidbits of difference)


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So much for an update schedule hey? Well, this chapter is extra interesting to make up for it ; )
> 
> Enjooooy!
> 
> Oh, and as you may have already noticed, this account is totally mine now. C's decided to stop writing for personal reasons, so I'm all alone!

It was a painfully slow week alone. Ludwig busied himself with training, studies, and official business, but he just couldn't quite concentrate. He missed his brother. Gilbert was off with Elizaveta somewhere for their honeymoon. He felt stupid and selfish. Gilbert was married now, he didn't need a little brother hanging off his tail. But he couldn't help it. His brother was all he had, all he's ever had.

They were due home any moment now, and Ludwig could barely stand still. He waited in the entrance hall, pacing about.

"Hurry up Gil. Where are you?"

The doors creaked open and Ludwig beamed happily at the sight of his big brother, before quickly recovering his stoic appearance. Gilbert wasted no time, almost pushing the guards out of his way to get to Ludwig. He hugged him tightly. Ludwig hugged him back. Elivazeta laughed by his side.

"You two are so close! It makes me jealous!"

Gilbert laughed. "He's all I had after Dad died, of course we are!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ludwig was so happy to have his brother back. He threw himself into his studies, working hard to earn some free time. He wanted to work hard enough for a free day he could suprise Gilbert with. He'd finally earned it. He was giddy for some reason; he hadn't spent time with Gilbert since he'd left on his honeymoon. He grabbed an apple on his way through the kitchen. He pushed open the door of his brother's room.

Ludwig dropped the apple, eyes widening in surprise and disbelief.

"G-Gil?" He said in a small voice.

Gilbert was naked on the bed, another man on top of him. Ludwig startled him, and he reached for the blanket to cover himself, the man scurrying away, putting his clothes on.

"L-Luddy, I-It's not- I can- Uh..."

Ludwig turned sharply, briskly walking down the hall to his bedroom. He slammed the door, leaning against it, panting heavily. He couldn't comprehend what he'd just seen. Gilbert was a married man, a king. And, and he was... doing such things... with someone who wasn't Elizaveta... with another man!

Another thing he couldn't comprehend however, was the tightness in his pants. He knew the feeling well of course; he just couldn't understand why it was doing that at such a time. He slid to the floor, feeling the bump through his layers. He swallowed, his mouth suddenly dry, and slid his hand under his clothes. He flinched at the cold touch of his own fingers on such a warm, sensitive part. He curled them around the base and started stroking. He moaned, it felt so good.

His brother had looked so vulnerable, writhing under that man, moaning. What sort of face would he pull if Ludwig was the one causing those sensations? What would his voice sound like moaning his name? What would he look like with his face covered in his brother’s spunk, his chest, his… Ludwig's moves got frantic, stroking and tugging. His other hand had joined in, massaging his balls. He bit back a yell as he came hard. He rode out the rest of his orgasm, eyes closed.

He felt disgusting. He'd just gotten off to the thought of not only another man, but his own brother. He pushed himself off the ground, walking awkwardly to the other side of the room to clean himself up. Once done with that, he crawled into bed, disgusted with himself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Ludwig? Can I talk to you? Please, let me explain."

Ludwig hadn't got a wink of sleep after the incident, despite wanting nothing more than to curl up and die. His brother had come by. Frankly, he was suprised he didn't just invite himself in; he usually did.

"Whatever."

The door was pushed open slowly. "Ludwig?" He sat delicately on the edge of the bed, where Ludwig hadn't moved since he'd crawled in there. "I'm truly sorry, I didn't mean for you to see that. That's not something I would have ever wanted you to see. I-"

"What about Liz?"

"...She knows."

This was enough to get his attention. He rolled over to face his brother, but couldn't look at him. "She knows? And what, she doesn't care? She- How did she find out?"

He laughed awkwardly. "Well, it's pretty obvious something's going on when you're trying to consumate your marriage and you can't get it up."

"Ew, did I really have to know that?"

"You asked."

Ludwig let out a nervous laugh. The awkward silence that followed seemed to drown them.

"Why... Why didn't you tell me?"

The question took Gilbert by suprise. "I...I I didn't want you to think I was disgusting. I didn't want you to hate me. I...I don't think I would have been able to cope with that."

"Gil... So this is what you meant when you were talking about being a monster the other day?"

He nodded shamefully. Ludwig reached up, hugging the other man. "I don't think you're disgusting."

"You...You don't?"

"Nope."

"Really?"

"Gil, I spent probably over half my life idolizing you. I don't think there's a thing in the world I could possibly think you're disgusting for."

Gilbert laughed, a sound of relief.

"So, who is he?"

"Huh?"

"The guy you were with."

"Oh, his name is Roderich. He came over with the Braginsky's and stayed. Funny story actually, Liz was the one who introduced us and told us to get together."

"So... you... like him then?"

"Huh? No, not really. He's just... kind of... there, you know. Somewhere to release my... feelings."

"...Right. That's kind of mean, isn't it? Shouldn't you be doing things like that with the one you like?"

He laughed. "We've already discussed it. A no-strings-attached relationship. Easy."

"You...You can just... do 'that'... with someone you don't care about at all?"

"Well, yeah. I just sort of... pretend he's the guy I like."

"So, why don't you just tell the actual guy?"

"Impossible."

"Why? Who is he?"

Gilbert made a motion like he was closing his mouth with a zipper. Ludwig sighed. "Whatever, just... I don't want you to get hurt, okay?"

He smiled. "Promise."

"I love you Gil."

"I love you too." He wriggled his way under the covers. For a change, it was Ludwig curled into Gilbert's chest, smiling contentedly.

Logically, the next thing Ludwig did was seek out Elizaveta. While Gilbert was off doing kingly things, he found her at the training arena, fighting Matthew, one of the recruits. He was losing badly. The small crowd of recruits that had gathered were speechless; a girl fighting? Unheard of. Ludwig leaned on a railing. Matthew was using a few of the techniques Ludwig had taught him, they seemed to be giving him somewhat of a fighting chance.

“They run things a bit differently at the Braginsky’s.”

His voice distracted Elizaveta, as she turned to see him. “This is pre-braginsky, thank you very-“

Matthew took advantage of the moment and hit her with his shield, knocking her flat on her back, a sword pointed at her throat. A single cheer rose from the audience. Alfred, the boy’s brother. This encouraged a few others, and soon the whole crowd was cheering.

“Ow,” she whined.

“I-I’m sorry! Are you okay?”

She laughed. “I yield, I yield.”

He helped her up. “No need to be so compassionate, I’ve faced worse than this in my time. Well done, you took advantage of my distraction and didn’t get distracted yourself.” She shook his hand. “But if your enemy says ‘ow’ on the battlefield, you still have to stab them in the neck.”

And with that, she left, walking over to the prince. “So, what’s so important you cost me the match?”

“I didn’t cost you the match, you did. You got distracted.”

She laughed again. “I know, I know, I’m only playing.”

“Can we talk in the gardens?”

“Sure.” She wiped her hands on her pants and took his arm.

They sat at a bench.

“You look troubled Luddy. What’s bothering you?”

“It’s… Well, yesterday I…Um-“

“Spit it out kid. I’m the queen, I haven’t got all day.” She giggled. “I always wanted to say that.”

Ludwig laughed at her ridiculousness. “It’s about Gilbert.”

“What about him? Are you two alright? Did something happen between you?”

“I guess you could say that? I found out…about… you know, that.”

“Oh, you mean… Gilbert’s… um, disposition?”

He nodded.

“I-I thought you would have been the first to know.”

“Yeah, well, apparently not. He was afraid I’d think he was a monster.”

“And…?”

“No! Of course not! He’s my big brother! There’s not a thing in the world he could do to make me think such things!”

“Wait, how did you find out then if he didn’t want you to know?”

“I… I had a day off, and I wanted to surprise him. I opened his bedroom door and… well I’m sure you can guess what I saw.”

“Ouch. What a way to go.”

“Uh-huh. If he’d just told me…”

“Well, I found out when we were having sex, because when he-“

“Liz! I don’t need to know that! Gil already told me anyway. Geez, you two really are perfect together.”

She laughed. “Sorry. So… does that mean you two talked it out?”

“Yeah, we’re good. I just… I just needed to talk to someone about it, you know? So, thanks.”

“All good, but you know, it is a problem for me. Sooner or later, the kingdom is going to expect an heir, and if he can’t do the do…” She looked at the prince.

“What?! Me? No!”

“Geez, I’m not that gross am I?” She laughed.

“I-I that’s not what I meant!”

“I know, I know. You really are fun to mess with.”

Ludwig looked down at his feet. “You weren’t kidding about the heir bit though.”

She sighed. “No. Unfortunately, Gil’s a pretty big problem. I’m either going to have to get him to wear a blindfold or something, or… get… you. I don’t want a baby that’s not from your bloodline, that’s just… not right. It’s your kingdom.”

He looked at the flowers beside him. “I know. I guess… I guess we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it, huh?”

“Yeah, sounds like a plan.”

They left the gardens, arm in arm, parting once inside the doors of the castle, off to do their own things.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ludwig really wanted to talk to that servant, Roderich, was it? But… He didn’t exactly want to speak to the guy. He had no idea what he would say. ‘Stop screwing with my brother, that’s my job?’ That could sound wrong, and he didn’t want Gilbert to stop being happy with that guy. Well, he did, but he couldn’t really offer much in return. He sighed, closing his eyes and rubbing the bridge of his nose. A headache was forming.

“Oof.” He ran into someone, opening his eyes. It was his brother, back turned, watching the servants down the hall.

“Hey Lud,” he said without turning around.

“Hi.” He moved to stand beside him.

“They look so busy all the time, don’t they? Like…Like bees.”

“I…guess so. What’s with this attitude?”

“Hm, oh, I guess… I don’t know.”

Ludwig sighed. “I have Thursday off, want to go drinking then?”

He brightened up. “Of course I do! When don’t I want to go..”

“Gil? What’s up? Thursday no good?”

“Um, I can just cancel it, so it doesn’t matter.”

“Gil, I can just ask to move the date if-“

“No. I’ll cancel it. You’re much more important. You know what? I’ll go do it right now.” He turned and walked briskly down the corridor. Ludwig sighed. What is with him? He took his brother’s place, watching the servants. He was right, they kind of did resemble bees.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ludwig couldn’t help but wonder what business Gilbert had to cancel to meet with him. He was king after all. He hoped it wasn’t important. They sat at the table in Gilbert’s room, a glass in hand. Gilbert filled them, raising his own once they were done.

“To always getting through the tough times!”

“To always getting through the tough times.”

“Together.”

Ludwig smiled at the addition. “Together.”

They clinked their glasses, downing their first beer in one go, as was tradition on these meetings. Gilbert skulled another.

“Geez, Gil, calm down.”

“Sorry, I-I just…Need this right now.”

“What’s wrong?”

“I…I’m a disgrace to the family. A monster who doesn’t deserve to be king.”

Ludwig sighed. “Haven’t I already said I never want to hear you think like that again? Hasn’t Liz already accepted the way you are? Haven’t I told you that there isn’t a thing in this world you could do that would make me think you’re a monster? Even if it ends up being just me and you, even if we lose everything, I’ll always be here, right by your side, no matter what you do, no matter if the entire world thinks you’re disgusting.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

“Nothing?”

“Not a thing.”

“What about if I killed somebody?”

“Even then.”

“What if I… lost the kingdom in a war.”

“Nope.”

“Even if… I do… this?” He leaned in close to his brother, reaching for the front of his clothes, and pulling him even closer. He kissed him roughly on the mouth. He released the other boy and he fell back stunned.

“See, I told you I could do something that would make you think- Why… Why are you smiling like that?”

Ludwig was smirking at his older brother. He lunged at him, grabbing the front of Gilbert’s clothes, and imitating the kiss he received earlier.

“I’d be a bit of a hypocrite if I called you a monster, right?” He whispered. This time it was Gilbert’s turn to be shocked.

“You…You…”

“We’re in this together. I told you I’d always be beside you. No matter what.”

Gilbert stopped staring blankly, a new look coming over his face. He smiled, eyes half-lidded, a very mischievous expression. “Then…” He threw his arms around Ludwig’s neck, kissing him once more. Ludwig wrapped his arms around the other man’s waist, deepening the kiss. “…Fuck me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Told you I was taking the story in another direction. How did you feel about that? I'm sorry to any PruHun shippers who clicked on the because it said PruHun. They had their moment.


End file.
